Gas producer



S p 1941' A. E. BLAKE 2,255,375

v I GAS PRODUCER Filed April 20, 1940 3 Sheets-Sheet 2' W WW IW n nnwn I r I ATTORNEY Sept.v 9, 1941. A; E. BLAKE GAS PRODUCER Filed April 20 1940 1s I l r 75K 21 L 9 I I I i x i W m 4 I I w- -1 a; 10

I. I gnvlgq-ron A, ATTORNEY 3 Shets-Sheet 3.

. and economy of material is effected.

to keep down Patented Sept. 9, 1941 UNITED STATE 5 PATENT- OFFICE 2,255,375 GAS PRODUCER Alfred E. Blake, Caldwell, N. J. Application April 20, 1940, Serial No. 330,690

3 Claims.

duce gas in'a large quantity per unit of grate areain such a manner that fixed charges are kept low Another object of the invention s the expenses for water and power for steaming v and for scrubbing the gas cleanwhere clean :gas

is needed.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be understood from the detailed description.

The invention will be understood from the description in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

Fig. 1 is a vertical section partly broken away, showing an illustrative embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 2 is a section along the line 2-2 of Fig. 1 with parts removed;

Fig. 3 is a plan view of Fig. l with parts removed;

Fig. 4 is a vertical section on an enlarged scale showing some of the details and Fig. 5 is a section along the line 5-5 of Fig. 4.

Reference character i indicates a base or foundation upon which one or more producers made in accordance with this invention are mounted. The ground floor is indicated at the level i.

The producer shell 2 is made of thick steel side walls and is provided with a thick steel top 3 so that the producer shell will resist considerable pressures. The shell 2 is surrounded with a water jacket 4 leaving a space 5 around the shell. The upper and lower portions of the space 5 are connected by pipes B and 6' to a steam drum I that is provided with the usual fixtures (not shown) to enable the steam that collects in the drum I to be used for any purpose where comparatively low pressure steamis needed. The superheated water under pressure in the jacket 4 makes it possible to keep the shell 2 at substantially higher temperatures than is usual in gas producers, thus reducing the tendency for side wall clinker to form a on the inside of the furnace. and also preventing consideration of moisture inthe air blast on the inner side of the producer shell below the fire or in the reaction zone, thus avoiding corrosion of metal by acids that takes place if water is per- 55 mitted to condense in contact therewith. Also, by using the producer jacket as a low pressure boiler, no overflow water is wasted. The heat that would thus be wasted is utilized to form steam, and much less water is needed for the jacket than is needed where water vapor is used merely for endothermic purposes with excess hot water wasted to the sewer. The steam evolved in the drum 1 at working pressure may be used for different purposes, such as purging the coal feed magazine, heating the building, drying coal or heating feed water. It is to be understood that suitable insulation may be used for heated parts wherever desired to avoid loss of heat.

'The operating floor level is shown at 8. The top of the producer shell is used as'a. feed water heater by providing a heater '9 and introducing the water thereinto as will be described below.-

A hollow spreader Ill for coal having hollow V arms is provided and is driven by a motor H through the shaft i2 as shown in Fig. 4. The

miter gear 13 on the shaft l2 meshes with the miter gear [3 on a rotatable sleeve [4 that carries the spreader iii. A set screw i5 connects the gear lit to the sleeve M and a set screw [5 connects the sleeve M to a pipe IS. A support I6 is provided for the gear !3' and has an arm l6'-for supporting an end of the shaft l2.

A valved water pipe i1 is provided for feeding water into a container 18 at the upper end of 'a pipe l9 that is slidable in the. sleeve l4 and is held in adjusted positions by the set screw l5. Two water inlet tubes 20 extend from the container I 8 inside the pipe l9 into the spreader I0, and the ends of these pipes terminate short distances from the ends of the arms of this spreader.

A vertically adjustable container M is adjustably supported on the top of the producer by threaded rods 2! having nuts thereon. A flexible tube 22 connects .the bottom of the container it to the water heater 9, and a stuffing box 22' is provided around the pipe I9 for making a water tight connection with the container 2|. Water "is pumped from feed water heater 9 through outlet pipe 23 by" means of pump 23 and forced into the upper portion of the water leg 6'.

A stepped grate 24 is. provided at the bottom of the producer shell 2. This grate may, for example, be of the sort shown in my application Serial No. 318,794, filed February 14, 1940, or it may be of other types with which the depth of the fire bed can be regulated by the rate at which the ashes are removed.

A feed pipe 25 is provided for feeding coal 32. Water spray from the coal supply 26, and feed pipe'is provided with valves 21 to enable measurediquantitles of coal to be fed to the producer. These valves may be governed in the well known way to feed coal automatically at such a rate'that so much coal will not be permitted to remain under the feed pipe as to cause an obstruction to the free egress of gas from the surface of the coal bed. A counting and recording means may also be provided in the well known way, to showthe number of timesthe valves 21 are jopened'and the amount of coal fed through them. The coal f'TiI' I; A suitable outletis provided in the top of the feed water heater 9 for the escape of the oxygen.

' The spreader or coal leveler I is made adjustableto different heights so that when smaller sizes of coal or coke are used the spreader arm It can be lowered to different positions, because different depths of fuel are used in accordance with the size of the fuel particles so'that the resistance to the passage of the gas through the fuel bed storage bin may supply a plurality of two or.

more producers, one producer and a portion of another one being indicated in Figs. 1 and 2.

The coal is fed by gravity from the bin 26 which receives the coal from the elevator 28.

A take-off or outlet pipe 29 for hot producer gas leads from the producer to the bottom of a gas scrubber 30 that contains particles 3| of solid material such as coke, ceramic material, noncorrosive metal, or the like, supported on a grill scrubber 30.

A heat exchanger 34 surrounds the pipe 29 to heat air for the producer and to cool the gas before it reaches the scrubber 30. A spiral fin 35 may be provided on the pipe 29 inside the heat exchanger 34 to aid in transferring the heat from the pipe 29 tothe air inthe heater 34. A twist-. ed ribbon 35' may be inserted inside the vertical portion of the pipe 29 to increase the rate'of heat transfer from the gas inside the pipe 29 to the ai passing through the heat exchanger 34. An air pipe 36 leads from the lower end outlet pipe 38 leads to an ash pit 39 below the producer. A distributer 49 is provided at theend of the pipe 38, and a steam connection 4| leads from the drum 1 and terminates in the pipe 38 in the direction in which the air therein passes from the fan 31, so that the steam andair become well mixed before being projected into the ash pit 39.

The ash pit 39 is provided with a sloping bottom 42 having an outlet 43 for ashes at the bottom ofthe side wall, this outlet being closed by a closure that is provided with a threaded rod 45 having a gear 45' thereon operated by a crank 46 for raising and lowering. the closure 44. An

, elevator 41 is provided for hoisting the ashes.

A .gas outlet pipe 50 extends from the scrubber 30 and leads to an involute positive pressure gas pump 5| from which a valved outlet 52 leadsto the plant distribution system fl. An automatic pressure regulator- 53 is provided between the pipes 99 and 52 to enable portions of the gas production to be recirculated through the pump il levels the upper surface ofthe coal bed and the water circulating through the leveler it not only protects this leveler from the heat but this water becomes heated before it is introduced into the heater 9. The temperature of the feed water in the heater 9 is preferably kept above 195 F. to insure thorough deaeration or removal of-oxygen which would be very detrimental to the interior the heater 34 .to a blast fan 91 'from which an 'pipes '33 are provided for the does not become excessive. The spreader or leveler It keeps the upper surface of :the coal bed substantially level, so that thin zones of coal do not occur to permit channeling of air and steam therethrough.

The opening for the air heater 34 is preferably so located that the air therefor is taken from the operating room, and this air is used to precool the hot gas, thus reducing the amount of water needed for cooling and the power necessary for pumping such water. Or, for any given quantity of water used in the scrubber, the moisture content of the washed gas will be lower when the heat exchanger 34 is in use than without it because the wash water will not become heated as much by cool gas as by hot gas; consequently, the gas coming from the cooler wash water will have a lower moisture content or lower dew point, thus providing improved gas to be used for many purposes-where water in the combustion products is objectionable. Furthermore, the lower the temperature of the wash water the greater the amount of impurities it will dissolve from the gas, particularly the objectionable hdyrogen sulphide.

Whenever desired, the scrubber 30 can be made in sections or compartments so that fewer numbers of compartments can be used with low rates of generation of gas, so that the supply of water to the unused compartments can be cut oil. Sincethe scrubber is located on the ground floor, the cost (if pumping water to an unnecessary height'is eliminated, a considerable weight is removed from-the operating floor thus reducing installation costs, easy access to the scrubber is provided, and the available floor space on the operating floor 8 is increased while the scrubber itself can be utilized in part for the support of the floor 8. Also, by locating the blast fan 31 on the ground floor, the lengths of the inlet and outlet connections are reduced and the necessity of supporting the weight of the fan on the operating floor is obviated and danger of the fan causing vibration of the operating floor is eliminated.

As the ash pit 39 is, in effect, a portion of the ground floor, the expense of a steel bin-for ashes is not necessary. What is claimed is:

1. In a gas generator, a producer shell, a water jacket around said shell, means to maintain pressure in said jacket considerably above atmospheric, a feed water heater at the top of said shell, a pump for forcing water from said heater into said jacket, a steam collecting means, steam take-oil means connecting the jacket and the collecting means, and means for introducing steam from the collecting means into the generator,

hollow rotatable coal-leveling means in said shell,

of the jacket 5 due to corrosion by this oxygen.

and connections for introducing cold water into said hollow means and from thence into said feed water heater.

2. In a gas generator, a producer shell, a water take-off means connecting the Jacket and the collecting means, and means for introducing steam from the collecting means into the generator, hollow rotatable coal-leveling means in said shell, connections for introducing cold water into said hollow means and from thence into said feed water heater, and a heater heated by hot gas from said producer shell for air to be used in said an lenerator.

3. In a gas generator, a producer shell, a water jacket around said shell, means to maintain pressure in said jacket considerably above atmospheric, a feed water heater at the top ofsaid shell, a pump for iorcing water from said heater into said Jacket, a steam collecting means connected to the top of said jacket, hollow rotatable coal-leveling means in said shell, connections for introducing cold water into said hollow means and from thence into said feed water heater, a heater heated by hot gas from said producer shell for air to be used in said gas generator, and means to introduce steam generated in said steam jacket into said gas generator.

CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION. Patent No. 2,2 ,575 September 9; 191m. I

ALFRED E. BLAKE. 1

It is hereby certified that error appears in the printed specification of the above numbered patent requiring correction as-follows: Page 1, first column, line 52, for the word "consideration" read --condensution' page 2, second column, line 55, for "hdyrogen" r ad --hydrogen-; and thlt the said Letters Patent should be readwith this correction therein that the same may conform to the record of the case in the Patent Office;

Signed and sealed this 11mm day of October, A. .D. 191 1 Henry Van Arsdale, (seal) Acting commissioner of Patents. 

